It won’t take the ‘perfect storm’ to wreak havoc across Tampa Bay
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When Hurricane Michael slammed into Florida’s Panhandle in 2018, the flood in Mexico Beach rose 14 feet.
Waves and wind pummeled the town until all that remained in some spots was rubble atop a checkerboard of concrete slabs.
For those in its path, the Category 5 was a once-in-a-lifetime monster, the “perfect storm.” In Tampa Bay, pictures of panoramic destruction were another far-off reminder of what could happen here.
The true threat is much worse.
“What’s going to be the Achilles’ heel of Tampa, what is going to really surprise Tampa is not a Cat 5. It’s not a Michael,” said Jamie Rhome, storm surge specialist at the National Hurricane Center.
He fears the kind of storm that would not faze plenty of locals but could be just as devastating: “A big, sloppy Category 1 or 2.”
Tampa Bay is more vulnerable to less intense hurricanes than anywhere else in the state. The perilous position is a matter of both geography and explosive development. The threat is greater because too few people understand it. Faulty maps, complicated science and outdated mindsets instill a false sense of security.
